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Virtual power plants

Clean energy

A heat wave hit New England's grid. Clean energy saved the day.

On the hottest day this year, behind-the-meter solar panels and a growing network of batteries helped prevent blackouts and saved consumers millions of dollars.

By Sarah Shemkus . 8 July 2025
Virtual power plants

California’s successful virtual power plant program faces big budget cuts

Companies tapping smart thermostats and solar-charged home batteries to help the grid say funding cuts could undermine their efforts and cost customers.

By Jeff St. John . 5 June 2025
Virtual power plants

Haven to install free solar, batteries for thousands of California homes

The startup is tapping a new state funding pool to help low-income families access the benefits of clean energy and battery backup for their residences.

By Julian Spector . 21 April 2025
Climatetech finance

DOE finalizes $9.8B in financing for Rivian, Plug Power, Sunwealth, and Ioneer

The Biden administration’s Loan Programs Office has sprinted to issue clean energy loans before Trump’s inauguration. Four more deals closed this week.

By Jeff St. John . 17 January 2025
Virtual power plants

Sonnen, Solrite to offer free batteries and solar to Texas homeowners

The catch: The companies will own and use the equipment to create a virtual power plant that they are betting will pay off installation costs.

By Jeff St. John . 16 January 2025
Virtual power plants

Fine-tuning how homes can help the grid as 'virtual power plants'

Real-world tests show that EnergyHub’s ‘dynamic load shaping’ tech can get thousands of thermostats and other devices to ramp up and down like a power plant.

By Jeff St. John . 26 November 2024
Virtual power plants

Google Nest spinout picks Texas for 1GW virtual power plant

NRG Energy and Renew Home think Texas is the place to use millions of smart thermostats to build the country’s biggest virtual power plant. Here’s why.

By Jeff St. John . 19 November 2024
Virtual power plants

Hundreds of New Yorkers got free batteries to help clean up the grid

A novel collaboration between solar installer Sunrun and utility Orange & Rockland shows how New York could tap household solar generation to advance climate goals.

By Julian Spector . 30 October 2024
Guest essay

We need distributed solar and energy storage, not utility monopolies

Xcel wants to build 800 MW of distributed energy in Minnesota, but makes it hard for its customers to own their own solar and batteries. That’s bad for ratepayers, and for the climate.

By John Farrell . 24 October 2024
Virtual power plants

Here’s a blueprint for building virtual power plants in every state

Utilities could save billions by tapping customers’ solar systems, EVs, and electric appliances. These firms and advocates have a plan to make it happen.

By Jeff St. John . 11 September 2024

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